Door frame



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DOOR Filed Jan. 21, 1955 3 Shqets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

RUPERT EVANS we'mwwsam' 0m A-r-r o mu Evs R. L. EVANS nboa May 27, 1958s ShetS-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 21, 1955 Fig.7

IN V ENTOR.

Rum: a L. EVANS A TOQNEYS United States Patent DOOR FRAME Rupert L.Evans, Kewanee, 11]., assignor to Kewanee Manufacturing Company,Kewanee, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application January 21, 1955,Serial No. 483,289

4Claims. (CI. 20-12) This invention relates to improved door frameswherein the stiles can be adjusted to vertical or plumb positions afterinstallation and the headers of the frames are supported on the stilesin such a manner as to afford neat joints between the headers and thestiles.

Another object is to simplify the installation of metal door or windowframes and to enable the stiles thereof to be maintained in a plumb orvertical position even after the settling, or expansion or contractionof the building frame.

A further object is to enable the frame to be mounted in the openingafter the wall finish has been applied but prior to the application ofthe baseboard to the wall.

The above and other objects may be attained by emplaying-this inventionwhich embodies among its features a pair of stiles, .a lintel carried bythe stiles for pivotal movement therebetween adjacent the upper endsthereof, means carried by the stiles and projecting outwardly therefromadjacent the lower ends thereof for pivotally connecting said stiles toa wall adjacent opposite sides of an opening therein, and adjustingmeans carried by the stiles for engaging opposite sides of the openingadjacent the upper end thereof and moving the stiles into verticalpositions within the opening.

Other features include flanges carried by the stiles and extendingoutwardly therefrom adjacent opposite longitudinal side edges thereoffor frictionally engaging the finish on opposite sides of a walladjacent an opening therein, means carried by the stiles adjacent thelower ends thereof for securing the stiles to the wall, a header,flanges carried by the header and extending upwardly therefrom adjacentopposite longitudinal side edges thereof for frictionally engagingopposite sides of the wall and confining the header for movement in anupward path between the upper ends of the stiles, means carried by thestiles and extending outwardly therefrom adjacent the upper ends thereoffor engaging the header and limiting upward movement thereof beyond aselected height, and means carried by the stiles and bearing on the wallbetween opposite sides thereof for retaining the stiles vertical. 6

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a wall having a door opening therein andan improved frame in accordance with the present invention installed inan opening therein;

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line22 of Figure l, and on a somewhat enlarged scale;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially on the line3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional view taken substantially onthe line 4-4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on the line5--5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view showing a stile andcertain elements associated therewith;

Figure 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the op posite. side of thestile illustrated in Figure 6, showing the parts thereof assembled and aheader in engagement therewith;

Figure 8 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view of a modified formof the invention; and

Figure 9 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken through Figure 8.

Referring to the drawings in detail, a wall designated generally W isprovided with a conventional opening 0 therethrough which isconventionally framed adjacent opposite sides and across its top bystuds S. The wall W is provided on opposite sides with conventionalfinished faces F and F. The structure so far described is conventionaland forms no part of this invention except in combination therewith.

The form of frame illustrated in Figures 1 to 7 of the drawings, forframing the opening 0 comprises right and left hand stiles 10 and 12,each comprising an elongated stamped channel cross section body 13having formed substantially midway between opposite longitudinal sideedges a channel shaped door stop. Extending laterally outwardly from thebody 13 in a direction opposite the stop 14 along opposite longitudinalside edges of the body are right angular flanges 16 which, asillustrated in the drawings, lie in spaced parallel relation to thefinished faces F and F of the wall W. Inwardly extending opposed flanges18 are carried by the free edges of the flanges 16 in spaced relation tothe sheet metal body 13 and guard flanges 29 are carried by the freeedges of the flange 18 in spaced relation to the flanges id forfrictionally engaging the finished faces F and F of the wall W.Transverse reinforcing plates 22 are welded or otherwise secured to theinner side of the sheet metal body between the flanges 16 and on theside thereof remote from the stop 14. Welded or otherwise secured to theinner side of each stile adjacent its lower end is a U-shaped yoke 2dhaving spaced parallel legs 26 which extend laterally outwardly betweenthe flanges 24 for engagement with the opposite wall finish faces F andF, as shown in Figures 1 and 3 of the drawings.

The yoke legs 26 are pierced as at 28 for the reception of suitablefasteners, such as nails 30 which are driven into one of the verticalframing studs S adjacent the lower end of the dor or window opening 0,so that the stiles 10 and 12 are secured adjacent the lower end of theopening 0 for movement about the horizontal axes of the nails 30.

Opening through the upper end stop 14 of each is a vertical slot 32 forreceiving the shank 34 of a screw 36 having a head 38 which is adaptedto engage the outer face of the stop 14. On the reduced neck of thescrew 34 at the inner side of the stop 14 is a stop washer 40 which,when it is snapped into place on the shank 34, locks the screw 36against longitudinal movement through the slot 32. It is to be noted.that the washer 40 is provided with a slot 42 which opens through theperiphery thereof and whose width is reduced :as it approaches theperiphery of the washer. The slot has a flaring upper portion 33.Threadedly engaged with the screw 36 between the stop 14 and the relatedframing stud S is a U-shaped pressure member designated generally 44which comprises a bight portion 46 having a threaded opening 48extending therethrough for engagement with the threaded shank of thescrew 36, and carried by the bight portion 46 and extendingperpendicularly outwardly therefrom in a direction away from the stop 14are legs 50 Whiclrare adapted to bear against the adjacentstud S. -Feet52 are carried by the free-ends ofthe legs 50 and extend outwardlytherefrom to afford bearing surfaces which engage the adjacent stud S.Welded or otherwise secured to the inner side of the body 13 of eachstile 1i) and 12 and extending across said body adjacentithe upper endthereof is abar '4 .whichsnot only serves .torreinforce itsrespectivestile but also serves to holdan inverted header inplace. Lugs 56 on theupper edge of the bar 54- project laterally from the bar .54.at theopposite sides of the stop 14. The upper edges of the stile bodies 13havetnotches 57 at opposite sides of the stop 14 in which the-lugs 56engage. The upper ends of the stile flanges 16 are mitered asat 58 forcooperation with miters 69 carried by opposite ends of side flanges 62of a header designated generally 64 which is provided midway betweenopposite side edges with a channel shaped stop 66. As shown in thedrawings, the header comprises a sheet metal body 63 which is stampedout toform the stop .66 and the side flanges 62. As illustrated inFigures 5 and 7, the opposite ends 70 of the body v68 are engagedbeneath the lugs 56 so as to preclude upward movement of the headerrelative to the stiles l0 and 12 while at the same time preserving apivotal relationship between the .header and the stiles. The free edgesof the flanges 62 of the header are provided with inturned frictionflanges 67 for frictionally engaging the finished faces Fahd F of theWall W.

In the modified form of the invention, illustrated in Figures 8 and 9, astile designated generally 72 comprises an elongated sheet metal body 74stamped to provide a stop 76, outwardly extending flanges 78 on oppositesides of the stop and wall finish engaging flanges 80 corresponding inall respects to the flanges previously described. Carried by the upperends of the side flanges 7 S and projecting outwardly therefrom :arelugs 82 which correspond in all respects to the lugs 56 for engagementwith a header. .Formed in the stile and extending through the stop 76adjacent the upper end of the stile is a countersunk opening 84 for thereception of the tapered head of a screw 86 having a reduced portion 88adjacent its head. A retainer 91 is engaged in the reduced neck 88 afterthe screw has been extending through the countersunk opening 84 with thehead of the screw engaged in the countersunk. The retainer, byengagement with the inner side of the stop 76, prevents accidentalextraction of the screw 86 from the opening 84.

As illustrated in thedrawings, one of the stile bodies is equippedintermediate its ends with a hinge plate receiving'recess 92 which ispierced with spaced openings 94 forthe reception of fasteners such asscrews 96 which extend througha hinge leaf 98 and through the openings9.4 into 'anadjacent stud S. It is to be understood that if so desired,the hingelleaf 98 may be welded to the stile within the recess )2 inlieu of fastening to the stud S. Obviously, when a door is to swing inthe opposite direction, the other stile will be provided with hingereceiving recesses 92 in which the hinge leaves 98 are secured in anyconventional manner.

The header 64 is positioned betweenthe stiles 10 and 12 at the upperends thereof and 13 pushed upwardly in the door opening and the stilesare pushed endwise in the door openinguntil the lower ends thereof are aproper distance apart. With the stiles thus located, the nails aredriven through the openings 28 in the legs 26 of the yoke 24 so that thestiles may pivot about the fasteners 30. It is to be understood, ofcourse, that the screws 36 or 86, as the case may be, are mounted intheir respective stiles and secured therein against axial movement bythe retainers or 90. Withthe pressure members threadedly engaged withthe screws, the header 64 is pushed upwardly until it engages the lugs56 or 82, as the case may be, and in this position the mitered ends 58of the stiles and of of the header will engage one another, asillustrated in Figuresl and 7. The stiles are then plumbed byturningthescrews 36 or 86, as the case may be, and moving the pressure members 44against the adjacent sides of the wall opening, as suggested in Figures2 and 5. Owing to the loose pivotal connection between the stiles andthe header, it will be obvious that as the stiles are brought to plumb,the header'will assume a perpendicular position between the stiles withthe mitered edges 58 and in engagement with one another. Obviously, asthe building settles, or if for any reason the sidesxof the wall openingbecome out of plumb, the frame itself may be plumbed by adjusting thescrews 36 or 86, as the case may be to adjustthe frame relative to theopening 0.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferredembodiment of this invention,-it is to he understood that minor changesin the details of construction, combination and arrangement of parts maybe resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as claimed.

What is-claimedis:

1. In a frame for framing an opening in a wall comprising a pair ofspaced stiles and a header bridging the stiles, the improvementcomprising adjustable means mounted on at least one of said stilesadjacent the top thereof for reacting against the adjacent wall surfaceand thereby moving said stile outwardly toward the opposite stile andthus determining the spacing of the first named stile from the wall, theabutting ends of the header and stiles being mitered and engaged forrelative sliding movement of the mitered surfaces resulting in raisingof the header responsive to said adjustable means being actuated to movesaid first named stile outwardly from said wall surface toward saidopposite stile, and abutment means providing overlapping surfaces onsaid header and stiles connecting said header to said stiles, said. overlapping surfaces on said stiles being engageable by said overlappingsurfaces on said header to limit sliding movement of said miteredsurfaces and lock said header to said stiles with said mitered surfacesin predetermined relationship.

2. In a frame for framing an opening in a wall comprising a pairofspaced stiles and a header bridging the stiles, the improvementcomprising adjustable means mounted on each of said stiles adjacent itstop for reacting against the adjacent wall surface and thereby movingsaid stile outwardly toward the opposite stile and thus determining thespacing of the stiles from the wall, the abutting ends of the header andstiles being mitered and engaged for relative sliding movement of themitered surfaces resulting in raising of the header responsive to .saidadjustable means being actuated to move the stiles outwardly from saidwall surface, and abutment'means providing overlapping surfaces on saidheader and stiles connecting said header to said stiles, saidoverlapping surfaces on said stiles being engageable by said overlappingsurfaces on said header to limit sliding movement of said miteredsurfaces and lock said header to said stiles with said mitered surfacesin predetermined relationship.

3. In a frame for framing an opening in a wall comprising a pair ofspaced stiles and a header bridging the stiles, the improvementcomprising adjustable means mounted on at least one of said stilesadjacent thertop thereof for reacting against the adjacent wall surfaceand thereby moving said stile outwardlytoward the opposite stile andthus determining the spacing of the first named stile from the wall, theabutting ends of the header'and stiles being mitered and. engaged forrelative sliding movement of the mitered surfaces resultingin raising ofthe header responsive to said adjustable'means being actuated to movesaid first named stile'outwardly frorn'said wall surface toward saidoppositestile,land abutment means connecting the headento the stilescomprising lugs outwardly projecting fromthe upper ends of thestiles,'said lugs being engageable by the header to limit slidingmovement of the mitered surfaces and lock the header to the stiles withsaid mitered surfaces in predetermined relationship.

4. The structure claimed in claim 2, in combination with a pair ofspaced parallel legs extending outwardly from the lower portion of eachstile for embracing the adjacent wall and adjustable attachment theretowith the stile fixed in plumbed position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS EllisJune 3, 1913 Zahner et a1 Nov. 16, 1926 Finley June 25, 1929 Bright Mar.18, 1930 Shea May 27, 1952 Logue Jan. 17, 1956

